Product Aftercare Guide
Here’s a guide to looking after your bathroom products, designed to be helpful and easy to follow:
Keeping Your Bathroom Beautiful: Aftercare and Maintenance
At Bathroom Builders UK, we pride ourselves on providing high-quality products that are built to last and look great for years to come. To help you keep everything in top condition, we’ve put together these simple aftercare and maintenance tips.
General Aftercare for All Products
Your new bathroom products are designed for durability, but a little care goes a long way!
- Handle with Care: When installing anything, be mindful of tools around your new items. Even a small slip can scratch a finish or damage fittings.
- Regular Cleaning is Key: The best way to maintain the sparkle is to clean regularly with just a clean, soft, damp cloth.
- Avoid Harsh Cleaners: Please do not use abrasive cleaners or detergents. These can ruin the finish and stop your products from working as they should.
Specific Product Care
Here’s how to care for different elements of your bathroom:
Shower Valves
Getting the right water pressure is important for your shower valve to work perfectly.
- Check Your Water Pressure: Before installation, it’s a good idea to check your water pressure. Too much pressure can damage the valve, while too little means it won’t work correctly.
- Pressure Reducing Valve: If your static water pressure is above 5 bar, you absolutely need a pressure-reducing valve installed in your mains supply pipe, set to 3 bar for best results.
- Quick Pressure Test: To see if your pressure is too high, simply turn on your cold kitchen tap fully and measure how many pints of water you collect in 30 seconds. If it’s more than 8 pints, you’ll need a pressure-reducing valve fitted to your incoming mains supply pipe, right after the stopcock.
Brassware (Taps, etc.)
Your brassware will gleam with a little attention!
- No Corrosive Chemicals!This is very important: DO NOT USE CORROSIVE CHEMICALS TO CLEAN BRASSWARE.
- Simple Cleaning: Regularly wipe down your brassware with a clean, soft, damp cloth.
- Avoid Abrasives: Just like with other products, steer clear of abrasive cleaners or detergents, as they can damage the surface.
- Shiny Chrome: For the best results, dry chrome with a soft, dry cloth after cleaning.
Sanitaryware (Toilets & Basins)
Keep your sanitaryware sparkling!
- Gentle Cleaning: After use, clean the glazed finish with a small amount of a suitable cream cleaner. Apply with a sponge or damp cloth and rinse thoroughly with clean water.
- No Abrasives: Avoid cleaners that contain abrasive ingredients or materials.
Tiles
Easy cleaning for your tiles!
- Warm Soapy Water: Clean your tiles by washing them with warm water to which a neutral, clear, low sulphate detergent has been added.
- Rinse and Polish: After cleaning, rinse well with clean water and polish with a clean, soft dry cloth.
Furniture
Different furniture finishes need slightly different care.
Melamine, Vinyl & Foil-Wrapped Doors
- Damp Cloth for Most Marks: In most cases, a soft damp cloth will remove marks.
- Stubborn Marks: For tougher marks, use a non-silicone-based furniture cleaner. Avoid hot soapy water.
- Wipe and Dry: Once the mark is gone, wipe the area with a damp cloth to remove any excess cleaner, then dry with a soft, clean cloth.
- Absolutely No Solvents: Never use solvent or abrasive cleaners as they will cause permanent damage.
High Gloss Doors
- Gentle Cleaners Only: Avoid cleaning products with harsh ingredients like acetone, alcohol, and bleach, as these can cause irreversible damage.
- Water and Soft Soap: We recommend using a soft cotton or microfibre cloth with water and soft soap (containing a maximum of 1% liquid soap).
Furniture Placement
- Keep Away from Heat: Do not place furniture right next to a towel rail or radiator. If they’re too close, it will cause warping and discolouration. Towel rails must be at least 300mm away from all Bathroom Builders UK furniture.
Carcass Components (Internal Furniture Parts)
- No Polish: Do not use polish on any surfaces.
- Damp Cloth and Soapy Water: Most marks or spills can be removed with a damp cloth and soapy water.
- Avoid Bleaches: Do not use bleaches, scouring pads, or multi-surface cleaners.
Glass Basins
Care for your glass basins!
- Avoid Rapid Temperature Changes: Glass basins cannot handle rapid heat changes, as this will cause cracking.
- Temperature Limit: The room temperature should not exceed 75 degrees Celsius where your glass basin is located.
Drawers, Runners, Door Hinges
Keep these moving smoothly!
- Clean with Damp Cloth: Wipe these down with a damp soapy cloth and dry with a soft dry cloth as needed.
- No Degreasing Agents: The roller runners and hinges are lubricated, so do not clean them with a degreasing agent, as this will affect their movement.
- Avoid Leaning: Never lean on partially or fully opened doors and drawers to access units. Hinges are designed to support the door’s weight plus small additional weights, like wire accessories.
- Check Screws: We advise checking that all hinge screws are tight every six months after installation.
Worktops
Though hard-wearing, worktops need careful handling.
- Protect from Damage: Sharp objects will scratch, and excessive heat will scorch the surface. Be careful not to drop heavy objects onto the worktop, as the surface may crack.
- Cleaning Spills: A damp soapy cloth will clean off most spills.
- No Bleaches: Do not use bleaches, scouring pads, or multi-surface cleaners.
- Wipe Immediately: Corrosive liquids and makeup should be wiped off immediately. No spillages, even water, should be left on the surface.
Wall Panels
Simple cleaning for your wall panels!
- Light Soap and Water: Clean using light soap and water only.
- Care Around Joins: Take extra care around joins and areas where panels have been cut, as water ingress can warp some products.
Temperature & Humidity
- Avoid Extremes: Try to avoid excessive changes in temperature and humidity.
- Ensure Ventilation: Always ensure you have adequate ventilation in your bathroom.
General Care: Spillages and Splashes
This is a really important one!
- Wipe Immediately: On no account should any spillages or splashes, even water, be allowed to lie on any surface. All spillages and splashes should be wiped dry immediately.
- Protect Your Guarantee: Failure to do so may shorten the life expectancy of the product and could even invalidate your guarantee.
Removing Glue Residue
- Specialised Cleaner: If you have glue residue on a high gloss surface, we recommend using VuPlex plastic cleaner only to remove it.
Shower Enclosures
Our Easy Clean glass makes cleaning a breeze, but it still needs some care!
- Easy Clean Benefits: Our Easy Clean glass allows water to bead and run off, making it much easier to clean and reducing the need for harsh detergents.
- Occasional Maintenance: While less frequent, occasional maintenance is still required.
- Lifespan: The lifespan of the Easy Clean coating depends on how often the shower is used and your water hardness.
- No Harsh Cleaners!Do not use bleach, alkaline, acid-based, aggressive, or abrasive glass cleaners, detergents, or household cleaning products on the glass or frames.
- Recommended Cleaning: We recommend washing the glass with clean water and a soft clean cloth or sponge, then drying with a microfibre cloth.
- Coating Location: The special coating is only on the inside of the glass.
- Guarantee: The Easy Clean coating is guaranteed for 2 years, provided these guidelines are followed.
- Aluminium and Chrome Parts: Clean aluminium and chrome parts with a mild, non-scratch household cleaner and a soft cloth or sponge.
- Avoid Certain Products: Do not use acidic-based descaler products or products unsuitable for cleaning enamelled surfaces, including abrasive cleaners or those containing bleach or solvents, as these will affect the anodised framework.
- pH Level: Under no circumstances use cleaners with a pH level exceeding 9.
Water Softeners & Easy Clean Glass
- Alkalinity Increase: Certain types of water softeners can increase the alkalinity of the water due to chloride carry-over during regeneration. This can cause aggressive water spots on both treated and untreated glass.
- Two-Cylinder System: If you use a water softener, we recommend a two-cylinder machine with automatic regeneration instead of a timer.
- Single-Cylinder System Care: If you already have a single-cylinder water softener with a timer, it’s recommended that you remove excess water from the glass with a squeegee or a microfibre cloth after each shower.
By following these simple steps, you’ll help ensure your Bathroom Builders UK products stay looking and performing their best for many years to come! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
